Sunday, January 12, 2014

Skipping Christmas - Day 6

Istanbul Day One

The boat did not get into port until early afternoon which meant we got to spend a relaxing morning sleeping in and taking our time. I went to Zumba class (Eric refused to come) and we both ate a large lunch to get ready for the afternoon ahead. Neither Eric or I had been to Istanbul and we were not sure what to expect. Even though we had been in Turkey the day before we were on a guided tour in the hills, not really being exposed to true Turkish culture. Right away we could tell Istanbul was great. It felt very European and had a nice relaxed atmosphere. Picture stop on our way to the palace (our boat is in the background).


We can never say no to friendly kitties!



 Yeah- we are at the palace gates!


Only that is as far as we got. There was an epically long line to get tickets and the palace closed in an hour. We enjoyed the outside and decided to go look at other things.


The Blue Mosque was open however! 







This open area was once the Hippodrome. This Egyptian obelisk looked brand new- we still can't believe it is an original from about 1500 BC.





Next we went to the Basilica Cistern. This was extremely cool and about the size two football fields. It was pretty dark and they played up the mood with all the orange lights.



There were a lot of koi fish swimming in the water (which looked pretty clean).


There are two Medusa heads that are column bases in the back. One is upside down, the other on her side. According to the brochure there is much scholarly debate and mystery as to why this is so.


 

It was dark at this point and things on our to-do list were mostly closed so we headed back to the boat. We enjoyed a 'snack' from the snack buffet. (The boat labeled 'snack' food always had burgers, pizza, sandwiches, salads, cookies etc. It never really was just a snack). We sat outside again- best views and no one was there because of the cold!


After our down time we went to the magic show! It was in the theater (where we had become regulars at the evening entertainment). The show was great! Some of the tricks we figured out but some we could not... it was a very professional and entertaining operation. All the shows always have two showings (usually a 7:30 and a 9:30) which allowed for a lot of flexibility in our schedule. We did the early showing and then hit one of the restaurants for our dinner.



We finally broke into the bottle of wine that they gave us! Here is our bad selfie holding our wine. There may also have been a plate of cookies involved from the late night 'snack' buffet...


Time to rest up for Istanbul Day 2!

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